Isles Fall To Caps, 2-1, in Preseason Opener

Photo by Bill Harper

The Washington Caps scored two power play goals Saturday.

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. - Big time hockey returned to Bridgeport Saturday night as the Washington Capitals scored two power play goals en route to a 2-1 victory over the “home” team, the New York Islanders, before 6,432 fans at the Webster Bank Arena. Islanders are the parent team of the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, the team’s American Hockey League affiliate and a primary tenant of the WBA. It was the preseason opener for both teams.

The Islanders did not seem particularly sharp in the early going. Case in point: The Isles were gifted a 5-on-3 midway through the opening stanza, but could not capitalize. Washington broke the ice nearly 14 minutes into the contest. With New York’s Tanner Fritz in the penalty box for cross-checking, Chandler Stephenson fired a shot from the left circle that JF Berube, the Islanders’ starting netminder, stopped. But when the rebound flew out to the high slot, defenseman Nate Schmidt was there to beat Burube to the top shelf. That staked the Caps to a 1-0 advantage which they took into the locker room at the first intermission. The Isles led in shots, 11-10.

The teams skated through an uneventful, scoreless second period, in which the Caps outshot New York 10-7.

Islanders knotted the score 3:50 into the third period. After Ryan Pulock’s slapshot from the right point was stopped by Washington netminder Braden Holtby. Anders Lee, the former Notre Dame star who played 59 games in Bridgeport from 2013-2015, sent the rubber biscuit top shelf past Washington netminder Holtby to knot the score at one goal apiece. If Holtby was showing a little rust, it’s understandable. He recently returned from the World Cup where last year’s Vezina Trophy winner was, incredulously, slotted as the No. 3 goalie on Team Canada’s depth chart and received absolutely no playing time.

Washington took the lead midway into the third period when. With Steve Bernier in the penalty box, Lars Eller sent a one-timer from the right circle over Holtby’s left shoulder to give the Caps a 2-1 lead with 9:26 left in regulation. And that proved to be the game winner.

The Islanders left many of their top veterans home, though four recent first-round draft-pick forwards were in the lineup, including Michael Dal Colle and Josh Ho-Sang, who are likely to wind up with the Sound Tigers.

“It's nice to get the f

irst one out of the way,” Lee said. “We played a pretty decent game tonight, but we put ourselves in trouble with penalties. But it’s preseason, and we'll learn from our mistakes.”

The Sound Tigers will open their preseason against the Hartford Wolf Pack at Trinity College in Hartford, and then will return to Bridgeport to entertain the Providence Bruins on Saturday, Oct. 8, at the Wonderland of Ice. The regular season begins at home Oct. 15 vs. the P-Bruins.